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This picture was taken during National Nutrition Month 2005 in the lobby of Temple University Children's MedicalCenter. The dietitians and the occupational therapy department joined forces to provide an information day focusing on nutrition and exercise. I am in the middle, explaining how to find out the amount of carbohydrate in a serving of food using the Nutrition Facts label. The woman on the left was one of our interns/now current staff and the man to the right was a PCA/nurse who was interested in how much carbohydrate different foods had.
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Clinical Dietitian, Temple University Hospital
Philadelphia, PA
I received my Bachelor's degree in psychology/biology from Wilkes University. I soon thereafter obtained my Master's degree in Foods and Nutrition from Marywood University. My thesis was on alternative treatments in Alzheimer's disease and I was able to present it at the ADA National Convention in St. Louis in 2001.
My first position after graduating was at Gracedale, a long-term care facility located in the Lehigh Valley. This was an 800-bed facility and while there I was in charge of the nutritional well being of roughly 350 residents. It was a very busy and interesting experience. I also had the opportunity to manage the food service department at times, which was challenging also. In my free time, I was able to speak for the local T.O.P.S. (Taking Off Pounds Sensibly) group and offer insight in to healthful eating and weight maintenance. After leaving Gracedale and the Lehigh Valley, I accepted my current position with Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia, PA. Temple University Hospital is a 617-bed tertiary medical center, certified Level 1 Trauma Center.
My responsibilities as a clinical dietitian at Temple University Hospital include clinical monitoring, the development/adjustment of diets, writing/recommending both enteral and parenteral nutrition support orders and nutritional education of acutely ill people. I deal with of people who have a wide variety of diagnoses. Conditions include heart transplant/cardiac surgery/congestive heart failure, diabetes, renal disease, liver disease and general medical/surgical patients. I also am responsible for one of the floors in our children's hospital and complete adult/pediatric outpatient counseling through several of our different clinics. In total, I cover 3 floors totaling approximately 70 beds. I was responsible for the development of the new weight management program at Temple University Hospital. It is an outpatient-based program to help with weight loss and weight maintenance.
If you have any questions, please let me know!
Chad Edwards |
